Nehemiah Chapter 7

Scripture: Nehemiah Chapter 7

World English Bible

  1. Now when the wall was built and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers and the singers and the Levites were appointed,
  2. I put my brother Hanani, and Hananiah the governor of the fortress, in charge of Jerusalem; for he was a faithful man and feared God above many.
  3. I said to them, “Don’t let the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot; and while they stand guard, let them shut the doors, and you bar them; and appoint watches of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, everyone in his watch, with everyone near his house.”
  4. Now the city was wide and large; but the people were few therein, and the houses were not built.
  5. My God put into my heart to gather together the nobles, and the rulers, and the people, that they might be listed by genealogy. I found the book of the genealogy of those who came up at the first, and I found this written in it:
  6. These are the children of the province who went up out of the captivity of those who had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away, and who returned to Jerusalem and to Judah, everyone to his city,
  7. who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, and Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel:
  8. The children of Parosh: two thousand one hundred seventy-two.
  9. The children of Shephatiah: three hundred seventy-two.
  10. The children of Arah: six hundred fifty-two.
  11. The children of Pahathmoab, of the children of Jeshua and Joab: two thousand eight hundred eighteen.
  12. The children of Elam: one thousand two hundred fifty-four.
  13. The children of Zattu: eight hundred forty-five.
  14. The children of Zaccai: seven hundred sixty.
  15. The children of Binnui: six hundred forty-eight.
  16. The children of Bebai: six hundred twenty-eight.
  17. The children of Azgad: two thousand three hundred twenty-two.
  18. The children of Adonikam: six hundred sixty-seven.
  19. The children of Bigvai: two thousand sixty-seven.
  20. The children of Adin: six hundred fifty-five.
  21. The children of Ater: of Hezekiah, ninety-eight.
  22. The children of Hashum: three hundred twenty-eight.
  23. The children of Bezai: three hundred twenty-four.
  24. The children of Hariph: one hundred twelve.
  25. The children of Gibeon: ninety-five.
  26. The men of Bethlehem and Netophah: one hundred eighty-eight.
  27. The men of Anathoth: one hundred twenty-eight.
  28. The men of Beth Azmaveth: forty-two.
  29. The men of Kiriath Jearim, Chephirah, and Beeroth: seven hundred forty-three.
  30. The men of Ramah and Geba: six hundred twenty-one.
  31. The men of Michmas: one hundred twenty-two.
  32. The men of Bethel and Ai: one hundred twenty-three.
  33. The men of the other Nebo: fifty-two.
  34. The children of the other Elam: one thousand two hundred fifty-four.
  35. The children of Harim: three hundred twenty.
  36. The children of Jericho: three hundred forty-five.
  37. The children of Lod, Hadid, and Ono: seven hundred twenty-one.
  38. The children of Senaah: three thousand nine hundred thirty.
  39. The priests: The children of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua: nine hundred seventy-three.
  40. The children of Immer: one thousand fifty-two.
  41. The children of Pashhur: one thousand two hundred forty-seven.
  42. The children of Harim: one thousand seventeen.
  43. The Levites: the children of Jeshua, of Kadmiel, of the children of Hodevah: seventy-four.
  44. The singers: the children of Asaph: one hundred forty-eight.
  45. The gatekeepers: the children of Shallum, the children of Ater, the children of Talmon, the children of Akkub, the children of Hatita, the children of Shobai: one hundred thirty-eight.
  46. The temple servants: the children of Ziha, the children of Hasupha, the children of Tabbaoth,
  47. the children of Keros, the children of Sia, the children of Padon,
  48. the children of Lebana, the children of Hagaba, the children of Salmai,
  49. the children of Hanan, the children of Giddel, the children of Gahar,
  50. the children of Reaiah, the children of Rezin, the children of Nekoda,
  51. the children of Gazzam, the children of Uzza, the children of Paseah,
  52. the children of Besai, the children of Meunim, the children of Nephushesim,
  53. the children of Bakbuk, the children of Hakupha, the children of Harhur,
  54. the children of Bazlith, the children of Mehida, the children of Harsha,
  55. the children of Barkos, the children of Sisera, the children of Temah,
  56. the children of Neziah, and the children of Hatipha.
  57. The children of Solomon’s servants: the children of Sotai, the children of Sophereth, the children of Perida,
  58. the children of Jaala, the children of Darkon, the children of Giddel,
  59. the children of Shephatiah, the children of Hattil, the children of Pochereth Hazzebaim, and the children of Amon.
  60. All the temple servants and the children of Solomon’s servants were three hundred ninety-two.
  61. These were those who went up from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer; but they could not show their fathers’ houses, nor their offspring, whether they were of Israel:
  62. The children of Delaiah, the children of Tobiah, the children of Nekoda: six hundred forty-two.
  63. Of the priests: the children of Hobaiah, the children of Hakkoz, the children of Barzillai, who took a wife of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called after their name.
  64. These searched for their genealogical records, but couldn’t find them. Therefore they were deemed disqualified and removed from the priesthood.
  65. The governor told them not to eat of the most holy things until a priest stood up to minister with Urim and Thummim.
  66. The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred sixty,
  67. in addition to their male servants and their female servants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty-seven. They had two hundred forty-five singing men and singing women.
  68. Their horses were seven hundred thirty-six; their mules, two hundred forty-five;
  69. their camels, four hundred thirty-five; their donkeys, six thousand seven hundred twenty.
  70. Some from among the heads of fathers’ households gave to the work. The governor gave to the treasury one thousand darics of gold, fifty basins, and five hundred thirty priests’ garments.
  71. Some of the heads of fathers’ households gave into the treasury of the work twenty thousand darics of gold, and two thousand two hundred minas of silver.
  72. That which the rest of the people gave was twenty thousand darics of gold, plus two thousand minas of silver, and sixty-seven priests’ garments.
  73. So the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the people, the temple servants, and all Israel lived in their cities. When the seventh month had come, the children of Israel were in their cities.

Nehemiah 7 — The City with Names

Watchful order With the wall complete (see yesterday), Nehemiah does not exhale; he orders. He appoints gatekeepers, singers, and Levites—security and worship side by side. Hanani and Hananiah lead because character, not charisma, rules: Hananiah was “faithful and feared God more than many” (English Standard Version). He tightens gate protocols—open only when the sun is hot, appoint neighborhood watches. Archaeology supports such Persian-period prudence; Jerusalem was small and vulnerable, concentrated around the Temple Mount and City of David. Holiness here is practical: vigilance is part of piety.

Names and holiness God “puts into his heart” to gather the people and register them by genealogy. The list mirrors Ezra 2, an imperial-style roll that also roots identity in worship. The Nethinim (“given ones”) likely trace to the Gibeonites (Joshua 9), now honored as temple servants. Some cannot prove priestly descent; the Tirshatha (Persian title for governor) withholds their priestly share until a priest appears with the Urim and Thummim (Exodus 28:30). Protection of the holy is not exclusionary pride; it is guardian love for God’s presence. Augustine saw such lists as testimonies to the City of God in pilgrimage; Calvin noted the mercy of God in preserving a remnant with ordered worship. In Hebrew, sefer hayyachas—“book of genealogy”—whispers toward Revelation’s book of life: names kept by grace, not pedigree (Philippians 4:3; Luke 10:20; 2 Timothy 2:19).

The spacious city “The city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it.” The wall is not the end; a people must inhabit, give, sing, and watch. Nehemiah 7 prepares for Nehemiah 8’s revival: structure before Scripture, so the Word can dwell richly.

Cross-references: Ezra 2; 1 Chronicles 9; Malachi 3:3; Ephesians 2:19–22; Revelation 21:12–14.

Hymn: Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken.

Prayer Lord of the City with foundations, write our names on Your heart, teach us holy vigilance, and fit us together as living stones. Order our worship, purify our service, and populate our “spacious places” with Your presence. Through Jesus our High Priest. Amen.

Narrated version of this devotional on Nehemiah Chapter 7